Benefits of Diet and Exercise to Better Arthritis Flare

This is a guest post by Kishana Sainte. Her bio and links can be found at the bottom. Thank you Kishana!

Arthritis is a debilitating disease that can literally take the fun out of life. Living through pain day to day can make doing normal everyday activities sometimes unbearable. If you are suffering from arthritis know that there are things that you can do to help yourself feel better.

There are certain aspects to life that can exasperate the painful joint swelling associated with arthritis. Here is a look at four reasons why your arthritis flares up and how you can use your diet and exercise to help yourself to feel better. Continue reading to learn more…
1. Arthritis Flare Up Due to Stress: Stress is a major contributor to increased pain due to arthritis. Although scientists haven’t found the exact reason why, experts, doctors and researchers agree that learning effective tools to deal with stress positively affects arthritis symptoms. Certain ways that you can negate stress through exercise is by doing activities such as yoga or meditation. These two modalities have proven effects on the brain, nervous system and body in ridding itself of the effects of stress. Also, cardiovascular activities like walking, biking or running are also highly effective for reducing stress, especially when done outside.

2. Arthritis Flare Up Due to Certain Foods: There are both foods that can increase your arthritic symptoms and others that can help dissipate your pain. Examples of foods that can increase flare ups include cow’s milk, shrimp, wheat, cod fish, chicken eggs, and some kinds of meat. Foods that can help decrease symptoms include fruits, especially cantaloupe, oranges, pumpkin, strawberries, and kiwi as well as vegetables, like kale, sweet potatoes, carrots, spinach, broccoli, cauliflower, and butternut squash. In addition to fruit and vegetables, it is also recommended to use spices such as ginger and turmeric.

3. Arthritis Flare Up Due to Weather: If you live in a cold, damp climate this may be causing you increased pain. Exercise is a wonderful tool to assist your body in weathering the storms. Activities such as aerobics, weight lifting, Pilates, yoga, running and biking all help get your circulation moving assisting your body in reducing inflammation. In addition, increase your consumption of healthy vegetables soups to increase mineral and vitamin intake while at the same time combating the cold.

4. Arthritis Flare Up Due to Overuse: If overuse is a contributing factor to your arthritis pain, then it is imperative to your health to begin stabilization exercises that help support your joints. Examples include squeezing a ball for the hands, plyometrics and weight lifting. Also include stretching or yoga to help inspire proper circulation. Also, increase your consumption of natural anti-inflammatories like green tea, omega 3 rich foods, olive oil, carotenes, vitamin c, and anthocyanins, which can be found in foods like cherries, blackberries and blueberries.


Bio

Kishana Sainte writes on health & lifestyle topics, including rheumatoid and juvenile arthritis on behalf of MyDocHub.com, a trusted online patient recommendation and medical information website developing condition-specific apps such as its Arthritis Flare Tracker iPhone/iPad app.

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